Panel backs retaining property tax moneyLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A proposal to allow Arkansas to retain excess property tax revenue from a handful of school districts won the backing of a Senate committee Thursday, but faced opposition from the top Republican in the House and superintendents from the districts. The Senate is expected to vote Friday morning on the plan, endorsed by the Senate Education Committee. The proposal was being considered as part of a special session convened to ad...

AG counters in fight over LR-area school cashLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas’ top lawyer said Thursday the state would be willing to split $119 million among three school districts to end a long-running desegregation case scheduled to be taken up by a federal judge in December. The Little Rock School District last month offered to drop all court proceedings in return for $297 million — in a lump sum or spread out over seven years — as well as reduced state oversight of Arkansas’ largest scho...

Ozarks town decries new ’anti-white’ billboard HARRISON (AP) — Harrison leaders who want to put the city’s racist past behind it are decrying a recently erected billboard that reads, “Anti-Racist is a Code Word for Anti-White.” The billboard went up Tuesday along a major route through the northern Arkansas city. A radio station with an advertisement on an adjacent panel asked that its sign be removed so no one would think that it was connected to the white supremacist sentiment. “I think t...

Governor names Scott to state Highway CommissionLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A bank executive and former aide to Gov. Mike Beebe was named to the Arkansas Highway Commission on Thursday, saying he agrees with the Democratic governor’s opposition to efforts to tap state general revenue for road improvements. Beebe appointed Frank Scott Jr. of Little Rock to serve the remainder of former Commissioner John Burkhalter’s term, which ends in January 2017. Burkhalter resigned from the commissioner earlier t...

Man with knife forces way onto Ark. school busJACKSONVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Authorities say a man armed with a knife forced his way onto a school bus as it picked up children in central Arkansas, then drove it several miles during a police pursuit. Police say 11 children and the driver were aboard when 22-year-old Nicholas John Miller got onto the bus Thursday morning in Jacksonville, a Little Rock suburb. Jacksonville police spokeswoman April Kiser says Miller was armed with a knife and pull...

Teen, 15, shot to death in northwest Arkansas WEST FORK (AP) — Authorities said a 15-year-old boy was killed in a shooting in northwest Arkansas. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office says Michael Dillon Brawley was found dead Tuesday afternoon near West Fork. Authorities said Brawley died from a single gunshot wound. Investigators say it may be an accidental shooting, but the incident remains under investigation. Brawley’s body was sent to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for an auto...

Fort Smith man sentenced to prison for slaying FORT SMITH (AP) — A Fort Smith man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to killing his girlfriend’s brother and wounding the woman’s other brother. The Times Record reports (http://bit.ly/H24CAQ ) that 38-year-old Frederick Newton was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to second-degree murder, first-degree battery and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The murder charge was reduced from first-degree murd...

Fort Smith library approves ban on e-cigarettes FORT SMITH (AP) — Visitors to the Fort Smith Public Library will no longer be able to puff on electronic cigarettes while browsing through books. The library’s Board of Trustees voted Tuesday to ban e-cigarettes, which resemble traditional cigarettes but emit vapor instead of smoke. “The policy as it stands now just says smoking is not allowed in the library,” Library Director Jennifer Goodson told the board, which unanimously approved the mea...

Hearing set in same-sex couples’ lawsuitLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A hearing has been set in a lawsuit brought by a group of same-sex couples challenging Arkansas’ ban on gay marriage. Online court records show that a hearing is scheduled for Dec. 12 in state court. A group of same-sex couples filed the lawsuit against a number of county clerks and the head of the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration this year. The couples are seeking a preliminary injunction and declaratory ju...

Shelter feels effects of shutdownLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A domestic violence shelter in Arkansas says it’s feeling the strain of the partial federal government shutdown. Board members with a shelter called Women & Children First told reporters on Wednesday that the impasse is hurting their organization and a number of other groups that receive federal funding. Meanwhile, in Washington, politicians were working Wednesday to end the partial government shutdown and raise the debt cei...

Rain keeps crowds away at Arkansas State Fair LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Steady rainfall kept visitors away from the Arkansas State Fair on Tuesday, but organizers say this year’s totals are still above 2012’s figures. About 5,000 people visited the fair Tuesday — far from the 20,000-plus who came the same day a year ago. General Manager Ralph Shoptaw says even with the slow day, attendance numbers are above last year’s. Tuesday’s crowd brought the attendance to 208,763 for the first five days of...

Recycling company to add up to 75 jobs in Arkansas FORREST CITY (AP) — An electronics recycling company has announced plans to open a processing facility in Forrest City, creating up to 75 jobs. AMT E-Waste Solutions said it will open an electronics waste processing facility in the former Forrest City Grocery warehouse on Scott Street. The company will safely dispose of electronics such as computers, televisions, photocopiers, fax machines and cellphones. AMT Chief Operating Officer Matt Perso...

Beebe calls special session on insurance LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Lawmakers will come back to the Capitol this week after Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe on Wednesday called a special session to consider an increase in funding for the state's teacher insurance program. Beebe issued a proclamation calling for the session to begin Thursday afternoon, with lawmakers expected to work through Saturday on the plan, which would lower insurance premium hikes set to take effect next year. "I would not be ...

Pryor’s war chest exceeds Cotton’s in race LITTLE ROCK (AP) — U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor and Rep. Tom Cotton each have raised more than $1 million as the two prepare for a tough Senate race in Arkansas, but the two-term senator has more money in the bank for next year’s election, campaign finance reports released Tuesday show. Cotton, a first-term lawmaker who in August announced his challenge to Pryor, reported more than $1.07 million in total receipts during the quarter that ended Sept. 30...

Arkansas State Fair cancels concert, closes earlyLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Weather conditions have forced Arkansas State Fair officials to close the fairgrounds early and cancel a headline concert. Fair officials announced Tuesday afternoon that the fairgrounds would close at 5 p.m. due to continuing rainfall. The fairground gates will re-open at 11 a.m. Wednesday. General Manager Ralph Shoptaw says the weather front passing over central Arkansas is expected to bring more rain into the evening, for...

Suspect waives hearing in power grid attack LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A Jacksonville man accused of attempting to sabotage a part of central Arkansas’ power grid waived his right to a detention hearing Tuesday in his first federal court appearance. Jason Woodring, 37, said he wouldn’t fight his detainment after being charged with destruction of an energy facility. Federal agents say Woodring attempted to bring down a tower carrying Entergy Arkansas high-voltage lines, caused a power line to dr...

LR schools offer to phase out desegregation money LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A proposal by the Little Rock School District to phase out desegregation payments it receives from Arkansas is a “non-starter,” Attorney General Dustin McDaniel said Tuesday, because it attaches too many conditions. McDaniel told a legislative panel he’d received an offer from the district that would end the payments from the state under a 1989 agreement. That agreement requires Arkansas to fund magnet schools, transfers bet...

Beebe: Votes shy for teacher insurance fix LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said Tuesday there’s not enough support yet in the state Legislature for a plan to alleviate looming insurance rate hikes for thousands of teachers. Beebe told reporters that there aren’t enough votes to pass the measures intended to reduce the rate hikes, a condition he’s set before calling lawmakers back to the Capitol to address the insurance rate increases. Beebe said there are enough votes in th...

56K people in state want to sign up for coverage LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The Arkansas Department of Human Services says more than 56,000 people have told the state they want to sign up for coverage under a recently approved plan to use federal Medicaid funds to purchase private health insurance. The department said Tuesday that from Oct. 1 through Oct. 12, the agency received more than 1,500 online applications and more than 1,100 phone and paper applications. That’s in addition to more than 53,6...

Nearly 600 employees idled due to shutdown LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas finance officials said nearly 600 state employees were furloughed because of the federal government shutdown, while two of the state’s universities said they were preparing to idle more workers if the budget standstill continues. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration said 590 employees whose positions are funded by the federal government were on furlough because of the shutdown that began Oct. 1. The...